Senior Citizen Who Kills 2 Repeat Intruders with Inherited Gun is Jailed. Home Condemned.

[Butterfly]

Warrigal and Lara, I agree with you both.

Lara is right, most Americans are not a bloodthirsty tribe out for vengeance, although particular individuals may sound that way at times. Remember, there are many millions of us, occupying every part of the spectrum. Unfortunately, it's always the loudmouths who get all the attention. And as someone on the anti-gun end of the spectrum, I believe the NRA and its followers have had a disproportionate amount of influence on legislation. But I agree with Lara, it's unfortunate if the gun-toting, shootm-up mob come to represent the entire country.

And Warrigal, I also agree with you. The equation of property with human life is used much too often. Or even somebody's split-second perception of an imagined danger. (A young man shot and killed by a security officer because he was reaching for his wallet to show ID? A child or a neighbor who could be confused and wandering into the wrong house? Etc.) Having those damn guns constantly loaded and at the ready makes it much more likely that someone will be shot, who is not any threat to the life or safety of the resident.

I do think too many Americans have watched too many movies of the old-fashioned western variety. And clearly, it is much too easy for the mentally disturbed to legally go into a store and buy any kind of weapon they want. Those facts are obvious to nearly every American.

A child or confused neighbor would not be breaking into a house. They might wander in if the door is standing open; but nobody "breaks into" a house because they are confused or a child. Breaking into a house is a conscious act and takes some doing. And if someone breaks into your house knowing you are there, you can bet your bottom dollar they have no good intentions towards you, whether they are armed or not. If you think they are just going to take your stuff, wish you a nice day, and then leave politely, you are living on another planet.

 

[Sunny]

Butterfly, do you really think the trigger-happy gun owner is going to start analyzing whether this person actually "broke in" (however you choose to define that), or whether they mistakenly walked in?

I live in a hi-rise building where all the corridors look identical. More than once, I've gotten off the elevator at the wrong floor, walked down to "my apartment," and tried to open the door with my key. Only then did I realize I was at the wrong door. What if my key had somehow worked? I would have "broken in."

From amused conversations with neighbors, I've learned that this has happened at least once to nearly everyone. And the reason we are amused is that nobody has gotten shot yet.

Your last sentence is typical right-wing scare-mongering. You are trying to suggest that everybody who gets shot is an evil-doer. It' s the same mentality that says that every desperate immigrant is a "criminal alien." What a sad way of looking at the world.

 

[squatting dog]

Butterfly,

Your last sentence is typical right-wing scare-mongering. You are trying to suggest that everybody who gets shot is an evil-doer, It's the same mentality that says that every desperate immigrant is a "criminal alien." What a sad way of looking at the world.

Likewise, your last sentence is typical left-wing drivel. You are trying to suggest that there are no evil doers in the world. Only people who are lost, or disoriented. Then, you appear to have the mentality that every desperate immigrant isn't a criminal. Pardon me... but what part of coming into our country illegally is not a crime?
Must be nice to live in fantasy land.

 

[StarSong]

Southern Californians are closely watching the unfolding news about the shooting at the Costco in Corona, CA. Quick summary: an off-duty armed LAPD officer was shopping in a Costco (that happened to be in an area not served by LAPD) and got into a kerfuffle of some sort with a mentally disabled, non-verbal man who by all accounts was "a gentle giant." What that kerfuffle consisted of remains to be seen, but the results were that the cop shot the man AND both of his parents, killing the man and wounding the parents to the extent that both are in critical condition.

While I realize, understand and appreciate that most off-duty officers legally carry weapons when out in public, this incident is a perfect example of how having lethal force at one's fingertips can end tragically. Perhaps the officer was pushed by this man - entirely possible. But did his actions truly necessitate the loss of his life and the grave wounding of his parents? I, and many others in our area, highly doubt it. Why the officer didn't deescalate the situation rather than whipping out his gun is a very big question.

p.s. I am not anti-police, so please don't surmise that from the above.

 

[Butterfly]

Butterfly, do you really think the trigger-happy gun owner is going to start analyzing whether this person actually "broke in" (however you choose to define that), or whether they mistakenly walked in?

I live in a hi-rise building where all the corridors look identical. More than once, I've gotten off the elevator at the wrong floor, walked down to "my apartment," and tried to open the door with my key. Only then did I realize I was at the wrong door. What if my key had somehow worked? I would have "broken in."

From amused conversations with neighbors, I've learned that this has happened at least once to nearly everyone. And the reason we are amused is that nobody has gotten shot yet.

Your last sentence is typical right-wing scare-mongering. You are trying to suggest that everybody who gets shot is an evil-doer. It' s the same mentality that says that every desperate immigrant is a "criminal alien." What a sad way of looking at the world.

Walking to the wrong apartment and trying your key is nothing like breaking and entering. I did not suggest that everyone who gets shot is an evil doer. What I am emphatically stating (not suggesting) is that anyone who breaks into your home (and I think it's pretty easy for a homeowner to figure out whether someone has broken in or not -- it is usually defined as entering a dwelling without authorization and with some degree of force -- is an intruder breaking the law (and hence an evil-doer, to use your term) and probably does not have good intentions toward the homeowner, and said homeowner has the legal right in most states to defend himself and his home with whatever force he deems necessary once the intruder enters his home.

As to being a right wing fear monger, I am about as far from right wing as you can get. What I am is a realist, and I do not intend to wind up a victim of head-in-the-sand thinking bleeding to death on my own floor.

 

[OneEyedDiva]

I don't like guns, I wouldn't want one in my home and I think all the shootings in this country are unfathomable. Just too much gun violence and deaths. BUT I think this man was within his rights especially since it was the second time these people broke into his home. I don't think he should have been arrested based on my current understanding of this case.